Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated he was the subject of an anonymous report that authorities determined to be false, an ordeal he said led to him spending a night away from his four-year-old twins. According to Buttigieg, a Michigan State Police officer informed him that the allegation was unsubstantiated and appeared to be politically motivated.
The Michigan State Police confirmed in a statement that they received an "anonymous report" and, in conjunction with child protective services, "responded and determined the report was false."
Buttigieg described the 24-hour period as "among the darkest hours of my life." He recounted that a police officer and a child protective services worker visited his home after the anonymous report alleged he posed a danger to his children. Authorities subsequently arranged forensic interviews for his twins and instructed him not to be alone with them until the interviews concluded.
Authorities informed Buttigieg the following day that the anonymous caller claimed he had confessed to violent crimes years earlier during an alleged chance encounter in Alabama. Buttigieg stated he had never been to the town mentioned in the allegation. Police told him the matter would not be referred to prosecutors, and Child Protective Services found no evidence to support the report.
"I cannot describe the mix of rage and sadness that I feel at the idea that someone brought our children into this," Buttigieg wrote. "They are four years old. Four. They do not know or care what a Democrat or a Republican is."
Buttigieg, often discussed as a potential Democratic presidential candidate in 2028, has frequently been the subject of anti-LGBTQ attacks. The notes mention that the incident occurred shortly after he shared photos of his family online for Father's Day. He also noted that he has received death threats during his career and that this incident was "the ugliest thing that has happened to me since my career in service began."
Public officials across the political spectrum have increasingly become targets of swatting, a practice involving false emergency calls to provoke a response from authorities, often with the intent of deploying a SWAT team. Law enforcement agencies have expressed concern that such incidents divert critical resources and endanger both the public and law enforcement officers.
Buttigieg suggested the incident reflected a broader escalation in political attacks, stating, "Everyone knows politics is ugly these days. It’s always been ugly, but now it feels more and more like bloodsport. Even so, this is different."